A French health minister tried to tweet her way out of embarrassing blog advice that homeless people should not go outdoors during the cold snap in Europe.

Junior minister Nora Berra was ridiculed on the Internet last week for writing a blog entry saying toddlers, old people, the sick and homeless were particularly vulnerable in times of extreme cold and should "avoid going outdoors."

Her note sparked a flurry of Twitter messages and media reports that she was suggesting the homeless not leave home.

Hundreds of people, many of them homeless, have been killed in recent days as bitterly cold weather sweeps Europe, with temperatures dropping to -20C in parts of France.